


we work so well

by sammthebitch



Series: Soul Songs [4]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Badass Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Dragon Kagami Tsurugi | Ryuko, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Fox Alya Césaire | Rena Rouge, Hot Mess Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Karaoke, Love Confessions, Opposites Attract, Pig Rose Lavillant, Shy Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Snake Luka Couffaine | Viperion, Tiger Juleka Couffaine, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Turtle Nino Lahiffe | Carapace
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:27:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27363502
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sammthebitch/pseuds/sammthebitch
Summary: and we don't even know why
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Kagami Tsurugi, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe, Juleka Couffaine/Rose Lavillant, Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Soul Songs [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1750849
Comments: 2
Kudos: 27





	we work so well

**Author's Note:**

> you guessed it: another "marinette-spotlight-luka-audience" fic. i just can't seem to stop with these. ;)
> 
> song used - why by sabrina carpenter

He liked blue; she liked pink. 

He loved the ocean; he was afraid to fly, she enjoyed the feeling of the air on her skin and hated the feeling of wet sand against her thighs.

He didn't really like getting out of Paris; she dreamed of seeing the world in all its glory.

No matter what they did, they worked. They worked together, they enjoyed together, and they loved together.

No matter the odds, they persevered. No matter the haters, they came out on top. And they didn't even know how.

* * *

Marinette was hovering around her latest creation, nitpicking each detail until the last possible second. She'd imagined the sunset as the top, but the sunrise as the bottom, as a way to say "fuck you" to the right order.

She kept finding mistakes that she chastised herself on ("I should've fixed this when I tried it on the first time, I don't know how I didn't notice it") but Tikki always kept her grounded and focused ("Don't worry! You'll have plenty of time to fix whatever you need before your night out!"). Except it wasn't a night out. It was more like an evening out.

They weren't going to any bars or clubs, but they were going to that place Luka frequented as a street player. There was a small stage erected for the Music Festival and there was where she would make her big debut. 

All she could hope for was that it went well.

Taking her mind off the performance, she heaved a sigh and got to work putting on her outfit, careful not to crease it or make any more mistakes than she'd already fixed. She wouldn't have any time to fix her careless stitches anyway. 

The ladybug flitting across the room stopped and hovered over the bluenette's shoulder as she took in a small gasp. "You look amazing, Mari." 

The teenage girl blushed and twirled a small twirl, getting the full feel of the skirt and stockings. The sunset top was an off-the-shoulder short-sleeve top with a sweetheart neckline, exposing some of her chest but modest enough to be allowed to wear on her evening. The sunrise skirt was tight and clung to her body, accentuating her curves and her waist. She was wearing black fishnet stockings with her outfit, and brown boot heels to top off the whole outfit. 

Her makeup consisted of rosy blush, golden highlighter, concealer to hide the acne that had started to pop up over the past couple days, and a pink, yellow and white smokey eye look. She'd tried a winged eyeliner for the first time that evening and had ended up winging it (pun fully intended) with end results she'd only dreamed of occurring. She had her normal black studs that came with her nighttime rendesvous' and with it were rose gold hoops. A charm bracelet hung from her right wrist, and her nails were painted a nice red and white, innocent enough to go with her everyday look but fancy enough to warrant it being done for the night. Her hair was curled and left down, much to her chagrin. She hadn't wanted it down in any way, but she was convinced by her parents and by her little guardian angel to leave it resting on her shoulders. 

She ended up liking it enough to keep it, and deep down she hid a smile as she knew she'd always get roped into fun adventures with this little ladybug around. She did another experimental twirl before snapping her neck around at the sound of the ding on her phone. She grinned when she saw that Luka was here to pick her up, and with a goodbye hug and kiss to her parents, she was on her way to the Trocadéro.

* * *

Her friends were already there, grabbing seats before the big black stage set up with mics and speakers big enough to project to the top of the Eiffel Tower. 

Her nerves were already spiking, but the tanned hand at her waist soothed her by just rubbing its fingers along the strip of skin that was showing. 

They'd only been dating for a couple months; they hadn't had serious talks, as they were still in the honeymoon phase. She figured she'd initiate what she wanted by singing the song she'd written a couple weeks ago, in hiding from the prying eyes of the glowing snake always hovering around her whenever her boyfriend was out. She'd had rough late nights and even pulled all-nighters, but she was proud of the end result and only wished he would be as well.

She grabbed the seat next to Alya, her eyes already gleaming with excitement and curiosity. The bluenette had only ever told her some details of why she'd decided to write the song, and obviously the details weren't enough to satisfy the brunette's curiosity. Thankfully, Alya didn't ask any questions as the emcee for the night hopped on the stage and announced the lineup for that night. 

She wasn't going first, thank god, but she was the last performance and that made her feel twice as nervous. What if people hated her? What if people wished she'd just gone first to do away with it? What if people didn't really appreciate the song enough? Questions and anxieties flooded her brain enough that she hadn't paid any attention the next few performances, only clapping and cheering on autopilot. Her nerves were sparked, and her hands were twitching, as if they were itching for her sketchbook. She'd only ever felt grounded in two ways: either Luka was holding her hand, or she was drawing/writing something in her sketchbook. Right now, she didn't have the latter but Luka noticed her panic and misinterpreting it for jitters, he soothed her with just one flick of his finger along her wrist. 

She blushed under the contact and grinned up at him, curling into him before the emcee announced it was her turn. As she got up and walked to the stage, mentally preparing herself while physically watching the audience to gauge their reactions. Her eyes fell on Luka's, and she was excited to notice the confusion and apprehension that was in his gaze. Looked like a few surprises could get through his façade after all. She smoothed her skirt and gripped the mic in both hands, introducing herself and what she was going to perform. "I'll be performing a song I wrote myself just a couple weeks ago: it's called 'Why.'" 

Luka's eyebrows raised and she winked at him before she completely lost her confidence. The pianist and the drummer behind her started in on the starting beats, and she soon found herself on the same wavelength, singing along to her own track playing on the speakers. She didn't want her own voice projecting to the crowd, afraid she'd voice-crack and they'd make fun of her. She'd asked if they could play the recording she'd sent, and she could just sing along with it and pretend. Obviously her friends noticed and frowned a little -- they were expecting a real live performance -- but they soon got into the mood and swayed along with the song.

_You like [Paris] in the daytime_

_I like [Paris] in the nighttime_

_You say you like sleeping with the air off_

_I don't, I need it on_

_You like the light coming through the windows_

_I sleep late, so I just keep 'em all closed_

_You ignore the music on the radio_

_I don't, I sing along_

The audience seemed confused, as did her friends in the front row as she sang about the differences between her and Luka. She'd had trouble writing those parts, trying to see whether other lyrics would fit but she couldn't come up with anything else that really fit their relationship. She focused on the sound of the music flowing from the piano and the drum, and on the recording from the speakers. She didn't need the audience to say anything, not until the end, not until she'd gathered up the courage to face their criticism.

_I don't ask for you to change, baby no no no_

_And you don't ask for me to change_

Luka smiled at that part, remembering the night she'd told him who she really was. He'd suspected for a while, of course, having used the Snake Miraculous on more than one occasion and thus gaining the intellectual insight that came with it. Sass had explained to him that he'd "inherit" some traits of the Miraculous over the time spent using it, and despite the headaches he'd constantly get, he enjoyed the long naps and higher drive; but Sass also meant he'd always get to know who Ladybug was out of the mask first. No matter what timeline, no matter what era, the Snake Wielder always knew. It had come as a shock to the rest of the team at first, but when he'd explained the logistics the way Sass had, they'd all understood and took it to heart, meaning that whatever he told them during Second Chances would have to go the grave. 

He'd always known Marinette was special, because she was the melody he knew inside and out; she was the harmony stuck in his mind and soul wherever he went, no matter how far apart. And he'd never ask/tell her to change herself or remove part of herself just for him.

_Tell me how we're not alike_

_But we work so well and we don't even know why_

_Funny how the stars crossed right_

_'Cause we work so well and we don't even know why_

_You can call it fire and ice_

_But we work so well and we don't even know why_

_We don't even know why, no no_

_We don't even know why, no no no_

_No no no no_

_We like it in the daytime_

_We like it in the end of time_

_No no no no_

_We like it in the daytime_

_We like it in the end of time_

She'd added that bridge/post-chorus as an afterthought, almost as if she'd written it by accident and had seen fit to not remove it. It looked like it belonged there, no matter how much sense it made to the audience or even to herself. To him, though, it meant that whatever they'd gone/will go through, they'd always stick together no matter what. Time couldn't pull them apart, and neither could the stars, for as she had said in her own words: "funny how the stars crossed right."

_Cold outside and you're just in a T-shirt_

_I have cold blood even in a sweater_

_You start your night sippin' by the kilo_

_I don't, I know you know_

_I don't ask for you to change, baby no no no_

_And you don't ask for me to change_

_Somehow we end up on the same side_

_And you wouldn't think that we'd be alright_

_Even our eyes are different colors, but we see fine_

That line made him break out into a grin; the audience might've thought that although they had these differences, it's what made them love each other even more, but he knew the meaning behind that specific line. He knew how much his insight and intuition meant to her and how much she craved his songs and his writings just for her. It was just the same amount as his craving of her drawings for him, her drawings of the night sky and the stars and the sunrise for him. It reminded him of the late nights they spent together just because she couldn't sleep, or because she had an idea that needed to get out. It reminded him of all the times they'd get coffee and ice cream by the Seine just to piss of André, who claimed that the hot beverage and the cold treat shouldn't go together. It reminded him of all the mischief they'd get into, because they were Boat Kids after all, and maybe someday they'd be Captains.

She finished up the chorus with a tentative smile and a glimmer in her eyes, making it seem like she'd regained her confidence along the way. It reminded him of how he looked when he sang, or at least how others said he looked. It was like he was relieved that he was done but also that he couldn't believe he'd done it, and that he couldn't believe so many people had come to watch it. As her eyes raked over the audience in search for a reaction, his stayed glued on hers, on her nervous habits of clenching her hands into fists and of the curls on her shoulder that had swayed to behind because of the slight breeze that had caught on sometime during her performance. Before he could stop himself, he walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her, a small sign that he'd gotten the message, and that they'd work together to create the relationship she'd conveyed in her words.

Without speaking, she returned the gesture and soon found her erratic breathing slowing down. She felt hands rubbing up and down her back and relaxed into Luka's hold, closing her eyes and just imagining this moment. She crystallized it in her brain for later and reached her hands up to wrap around his neck. His eyes fluttered open and so did hers, just to close again as they met for a promising kiss, to seal the deal that they'd work together, no matter for how long.

They ignored the cheers and coos as they lost themselves in their own world, forgetting about the city around them and just immersing themselves in the love that they'd created.

**Author's Note:**

> if you're wondering why i changed the setting in the first two lines of lyrics for the song, it's because they both live in paris and not in new york city.


End file.
